Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has directed an order eradicating around two dozen land reclamation activities in Manila Bay to evaluate their environmental and social affect, according to his environment chief. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is searching for companies’ compliance with regulations including reclamation, Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo-Loyzaga said in a televised briefing on Thursday, without labelling the activities. The suspension will be in effect whilst a government team reviews the activities.
There are a around 22 reclamation activities and they were all accepted during the term of previous president Rodrigo Duterte. The suspension comes more than a week after the American embassy in Manila, discovered nearby the Manila Bay, highlighted problems that the reclamation activities in the place could throw predicament to the environment. The embassy also flagged the interference in some activities of China Communications Construction, which it conveyed supported Beijing construct and militarise artificial islands in the South China Sea, according to CNN Philippines.